Actor pushed, shoved, punched and then followed after attempt to see lawyer under house arrestHollywood star said all he wanted to do was 'shake the man's hand...and tell him what an inspiration he is'

Chen Guangcheng, a blind lawyer,
angered authorities in 2005 by exposing forced abortions
as part of China's one-child policy

Hollywood actor Christian Bale was
manhandled and roughed up by Chinese security guards as he tried to
visit a blind legal activist whose detention has sparked international
outcry.

Bale,
joined by a camera crew from CNN, was confronted by four men dressed in
plain clothes as he tried to visit Chen Guangcheng who has been under
house arrest in the Dongshigu village for 15 months.

The
Oscar-winning actor, who plays superhero Batman, can be seen being
pushed and shoved by the guards before being frogmarched away in the
video released by CNN.

'Why can I not visit this free man?' Bale can be heard repeatedly asking the security officers, while they were pushing him.

In response the guards are reported to have shouted 'Go away!' while physically shoving Bale and the crew on Thursday.

According
to the report, Bale was also punched by the guards who were aiming for
his small camera in an attempt to stop him recording.